|
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA
– Friday 16th to Thursday
29th April 2004
Bob & Shirley’s ‘Yetaboon’
Pilgrimage (continued)
[Reporter: Gerry PECK; Photographer:
Margaret PECK; ‘Ead ‘Itter:
George MILLIE]
Day Eleven – Australia
Zoo
Monday 26th April
The
agenda for the day was a trip to Australia Zoo at Beerwah, a small town
nestled in the shadow of the Glasshouse
Mountains. It is the
home of Steve Irwin, better known as the ‘Crocodile Hunter’. We arrived in
good time for the commencement of the live shows in the “Crocoseum”,
a huge new complex that is like a sort of Coliseum with water. Bob and
Shirley were well chuffed because they got in for pensioner rates, a saving
of $10. The show was very professional, most entertaining, impressive, and
the handlers and animals/birds were obviously well attuned to each other. The
highlight was the interaction with two huge Estuarine crocodiles, and the
icing on the cake the personal appearance of Steve and Terri Irwin. Their
handling of the huge reptiles was incredible, with Steve on several occasions
actually in the lagoon at the same time as the crocs. Their intentions
towards him were manifestly obvious and he had to move sharply in several
instances. Sitting directly above this scenario, we could see all too clearly
just how close the crocs were as he scrambled out of the chest-high water.
Crocs normally lurk in murky water and attack by stealth, so they were at a
disadvantage in the crystal clear water of the Crocoseum
lagoon. Even so …!
Australia Zoo – Bob Langley and ‘friends’
Australia Zoo ‘Crocoseum’
– Steve Irwin and ‘friend’
The
Zoo has been upgraded and is just immaculate; the staff
is dedicated, enthusiastic and courteous to a fault. It was tremendous value
for money and we managed to cover the entire 60 acres and all the major
exhibits and shows during our day there. The next expansion will incorporate
a further 120 acres, the intention being to establish it as the premier
conservation zoo in the world. Bob summed it up with one word, “fabulous”.
While Shirley enthused about the cleanliness of the place, wherever we
wandered there was no litter whatsoever. We rounded the day off with a trip
to the lookout point for the Glasshouse
Mountains, doing an
involuntary detour on the way out that appeared to save us some time in the
fairly heavy traffic on the main highway, which we rejoined at Caboolture.
Gerry, Shirley & Bob with one of the Glasshouse Mountains in the distance
Day Twelve –
Sanctuary Cove
Tuesday 27th April
Today
was earmarked for a trip to Sanctuary Cove, a private estate and boat Marina set amid golf
courses in prime Greg Norman country. Adjacent to the Marina the many specialty shops and superb
eating establishments are accessible to the general public, with plenty of
free parking too. Meeting up with Reg and Vera
again we set up lunch for 12.00 hrs in “George’s”, a rather posh eating house
with full waiter service to every table. We then wandered the Marina area, checking
out some of the luxurious craft moored there, even getting a free tour of a
Houseboat. After checking out some of the excellent shops we entered “George’s”
for lunch. On my recommendation Bob and Shirley joined us in ordering the
Barramundi, except Reggie who preferred a steak meal. The “Barra” was superb
and the table service excellent, with some inadvertent juggling thrown in as
live entertainment by our hapless waiter. Including the coffees and alcoholic
beverages the bill worked out at just $22.50c per person. We all thought that
the cuisine was well up to the mark!
Following
the very enjoyable lunch we made our way down to Harbour Town
so that Shirley could buy a suitcase to replace one that had a broken zip. Reg and Vera were getting so many business calls on their
mobile phone that they decided to go home and organise some sort of roster to
cover the sudden unseasonal demand for their
professional services. Many purchases later, before calling it a day, we
decided to check out the goings-on at Surfers Paradise. Bob and Shirley just
loved the place, it has an off-beat ambience that is always constant, come
rain, hail or shine. Considering all that it has to offer, the Gold Coast’s
many shops and Arcades and remarkably keenly-priced merchandise, not to
mention low cost meals at various establishments, (e.g. 200g steak with chips
and side salad $7 ) drew from them many appreciative comments.
Day Thirteen –
Brisbane
Wednesday 28th April
This
was the penultimate day for Bob and Shirley’s stay with us here in Oz; their
choice of venue for the day was a trip into Brisbane itself. To give them a chance to
see things from a different perspective we left the car at a nearby station
car park and took the electric train into the City, disembarking at Central
Station. The trains run every half hour and from Central and it is just a
short walk into the Queen Street Mall, which is the beating heart of Brisbane. Maggie, often
venturing into the city with our daughter, is a far more frequent visitor to Brisbane than I, so this
was her opportunity to shine as head tour guide for the day. Checking out the
various shops and stores lining both sides of the Mall, we then popped into
the very large Myer complex with is its multi-storey arcades. We ate lunch, a
quarter chicken with chips for $4.50 each, at the
“Red Rooster” franchise, one of the many eating concessions on the lowest
level. Hunger thus dealt with effectively, we
made our way to the Treasury Casino by the banks of the river and spent well
over an hour or so demolishing the profits made from a $5.00 note invested in
the poker machines.
In an
attempt to beat the rush-hour we caught the return train at 15.06 hrs and
drove the rest of the way home from the station where we had left the car.
Bob joined me for a game of pool on my 8’ x 4’ slate-top billiard table and
we had a very good session indeed. In some very closely-fought games we were
level-pegging and opted to play a decider. Bob is a very fine potter of a
ball and to be perfectly frank he was doing better than I, prompting me to
play a more tactical game, aka ‘dirty pool’. In the end I managed to finesse
him into a bad situation, pipping him at the post. A very enjoyable evening
followed by a delicious meal prepared by Maggie and Shirley brought another
brilliant day to a close. Other than the odd light shower during the course
of the day even the threatened heavy rain failed to manifest itself.
A serious moment in the pool room
Day Fourteen – New Zealand
Bound
Thursday 29th April
Breakfast
was tinged with a little sadness, because at 13.20 hrs Bob and Shirley had to
leave for New Zealand
on the second leg of their Antipodean odyssey. Reg and Vera rang to wish them God speed, so typical of
that warm-hearted pair. We drove them to the International Terminal at Brisbane Airport, arriving spot-on at 11.20 hrs
in order to comply with Flight instructions to be there at least 2 hrs prior
to departure time. Accompanying them to the baggage check-in area in the
departures lounge, we took our leave of each other with Shirley having a ‘wee
toot’ at the parting. As we said our farewells they assured us of their
intention to return, and our last view of them was from the escalator as we
descended to the lower levels of the terminal.
Reflections
In
conclusion to this fantastic fortnight I have to say Bob and Shirley were
great company; they appreciated everything that was done for them and when
something occasionally went awry, as happens with the best laid plans, their
sense of humour made light of it. They fitted in extremely well with us FEOFA
lads and lasses when we gathered together in numbers and the camaraderie that
we ex-Brats always enjoy was there in full measure throughout. My ‘crook’
back gave me some ‘gyp’ as a result of a chair leg giving way on one of our
trips, slowing me down more and more throughout the fortnight. Bob and
Shirley were very understanding and solicitous of my limitations and lack of
ground speed. Personally, it was a reaffirmation of a long ago comradeship
and a most welcome contact with an old friend. For Maggie and Shirley, it was
the discovery of a mutual soul mate and the start of a friendship that we
hope will continue to flourish in the years ahead. The old Arborfield
mystique is alive and well!
But
wait! There’s more! In the morning, Bob Driscoll (53B) and his wife Sheila
are due to arrive in Brisbane…….bewdy!
Published: April 2004
|
